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Ally Curry's Story

Ally Curry was sick “from the moment I was born.” Suffering from severe asthma and allergies, Ally was on oral steroids and a nebulizer before her first birthday. She was taking antibiotics more often than she was off them, and she and her parents lived in constant fear of a life-threatening allergic reaction.

“I was getting worse,” Ally says. “I was on every treatment I could be on, and it didn’t seem like there was anywhere left to turn.”

Ally wasn’t growing, and her parents worried about the side effects from all of her treatments. At her annual check-up, Ally’s pediatrician told her parents about National Jewish Health.

“He said, ‘Just call them,’” Ally recalls.

Within a few weeks, she and her mom traveled from their home in California to Denver, where Ally received a full work-up that included a Ph probe. Doctors uncovered that she had severe reflux that had damaged her esophagus. They also confirmed that she had severe asthma and allergies.

Ally began commuting to National Jewish Health for her care, flying back and forth every two weeks.

“I remember feeling healthy for the first time in my life,” Ally says. “I have so many memories of having an asthma attack, and thinking that I was going to die.”

“Then, it wasn’t the focus every day,” she says. “I remember having quality of life and seeing my parents relax a little bit and having peace of mind. My whole family feels like National Jewish Health was a turning point in my life.”

Two years later, she had the opportunity to enroll in a study for a treatment for severe asthma at National Jewish Health. Ally and her grandmother moved to Denver, and her family followed a year later.

When the two-year study ended, Ally’s condition was stable, and she was able to stop steroid treatment.

“I was able to stay off of the steroids for two years,” Ally says. “The timing was really crucial to my health because I was able to have a growth spurt and develop normally.”

A bout of pneumonia put Ally back on steroids, which she continues to take today.

Now married with two children, Ally’s husband’s job takes them to many different cities in the United States, and she still seeks the expert care from doctors who were trained at National Jewish Health.

“Every time we move, I call National Jewish Health and I ask if there is a doctor in the area who trained there.”